Tag Archives: Mercy

Happy Easter, my dear readers! Christus resurrexit! Resurrexit sicut dixit! Alleluia! Today, we celebrate Christ’s double victory over sin and death, a share of which victory Christ offers to all humanity. Though we are yet troubled by sin in this life, we shall one day cease to offend God and men and no longer be troubled by the effects of human wickedness in ourselves and others. Though we all shall die, death has been transformed into the entrance to life illimitable. How great the reward, and how little God asks of us! Even if our malice, weakness, and ignorance frequently cause us to fall short of God’s commands, repentance continually brings us ever closer to God despite many falls.

Recently, I made the happy discovery of another “Dante class anime”: Blood Blockade Battlefront. (See the page “Anime for Christians“ for a description of “Dante class anime.”) Many who have seen this anime might thinks that monsters are the only thing Blood Blockade Battlefront has in common with The Divine Comedy. But, Christian themes are intentionally used throughout the show. I was first alerted to the possibility of this when Mary MacBeth says that people commit the same wrongs they did two thousand years ago when Christ came to earth.

Watching Chain Chronicle has proven quite fun so far. This classic fantasy provides the viewer with a bevy of strong heroes, implacable foes, beautiful warrior maidens, and a Luke Skywalker-ish hero for its viewers to engage in “egocentric castle building,” as C. S. Lewis termed it in An Experiment in Criticism. This is a fantasy fully in the spirit of Dungeons and Dragons. It’s fun, but nothing within the story thus far has struck me as uncommon.

Bruckhardt’s fall from grace counts as the most interesting event of the story thus far. From the first, my ears heard “Blackheart” when the seiyuu pronounced the knight’s name, and episode three revealed his transformation to a Blackheart indeed. The twin scourges of pride and melancholy oppressed him on account of the preferment Yuri gave to Aram. This allowed him to fall easy prey to the evil influence of the Black King’s demon. There is no faster way to hell than pride: the way Lucifer fell and the chief fault of Adam. Even the early Church Fathers wrote that pride alone suffices to send one to hell, even as humility provides the surest means to salvation among the virtues.

Here is the second part of my mid-season review. Looking at what’s written below, the general mood seems to be one of criticism, except for Kiznaiver, anyway. With that note, let’s get into my thoughts on Mayoiga, Kiznaiver, Haifuri, and Flying Witch.

5) Mayoiga (aka The Lost Village)

At this point, I’m sticking around merely to see the end of the show. I had hopes of these characters overcoming their fears and behaving rationally, but no dice. At last, we have discovered that a village adjoins Nanaki village beyond the tunnel and that the monsters are both produced by our characters fears and truly are able to interact with the real world. Our heroes must overcome their fears lest their phobias cause them more than mental harm, but can they?

This topic came to the fore of my mind recently while having a talk with my father on the burial of suicides. I brought up the fact that suicides were much fewer in number when they were forbidden a place on hallowed ground. This very practice highlighted the gravity of suicide, i.e. damning in and of itself. My father brought forward that there may be many extenuating circumstances (mental illness, extreme pain, or the threat of extreme pain) in each individual case, which diminish the suicide’s culpability. Also, the mercy of God is beyond imagining. Contrary to the opinion of the Church of the Middle Ages, we cannot be sure that every suicide is in hell. I countered, but, does that not diminish the seriousness of the sin in most people’s eyes? I might have even added that we now have people who hold suicide as a natural right or that suicides might now understand that they can gain the Kingdom without carrying their cross.

We went forth back and forth on this issue, I emphasizing justice and my father mercy, which leads us to the interesting topic of which of these attributes should be emphasized. (If you were curious, yes, I was playing devil’s advocate above: suicides ought to receive a Christian burial because God’s mercy is infinitely greater than human wickedness–even in the case of something as final as suicide.) Many say that we can reasonably assume that most are saved. Others, however, contend that this lackadaisical attitude toward salvation causes many to be damned. Rather, it is reasonable to assume that most or even all penitents are saved, but most of humanity do not seek or even want God’s forgiveness.

The desire to write another article on Ashita no Joe has chaffed me for a long time. Considering that Ashita no Joe contains as many themes as Hamlet or King Lear, I have no fear that I shall exhaust the topics I can use for my upcoming column on Beneath the Tangles. Before I get into the idea of laughing into the abyss, watch the following clip–it’s short.

Frightening and insane, isn’t it? About thirty percent of all the laughter in Ashita no Joe partakes of some insanity, another thirty percent strikes the ears as pathetic, and much of the rest is derisive. The laughter is not happy because few of the main characters are. Our heroes struggle against nihilism after obstacle after obstacle is placed in their attempt to realize a truly human life. Before the eyes of Joe Yabuki, whose heart has taken a glacial hardness, and before the eyes of Danpei Tange, whose everyday life revolves around draining saké bottles, there lies a great and unfathomable abyss. These two heroes start out at rock bottom. The very uselessness of their lives renders Danpei’s laughter pathetic and imbues Joe’s with scorn.

Here’s one last article on Black Bullet and the Spring season of 2014. Like most of you, Kisara’s utter obliteration of her treacherous brother took me by surprise. I thought that she would let him off with the loss of his legs, but I suppose cutting off a limb is always the prelude to giving the killing stroke–whether one is considering Japanese or Western martial arts. Anyway, the parricidal villain got what he deserved.

Or did he? Kisara laughs maniacally after his death and claims that she is evil and that only evil can eradicate evil. These two claims strike one as shocking, especially for someone from a culture where filial piety is so esteemed. (And no, evil cannot eradicate evil. Only justice and mercy can.) When one takes that into account along with the traditional belief that the victims of murder will not rest in peace until they have been avenged, I’d say that most Japanese would think badly of her had she not killed Kazumitsu Tendo.

So, whence arises the idea that she did wrong? I am tempted to think Kisara’s words as purely rooted in the emotion of the moment. To a person of integrity, killing is always ugly and painful even if justified. Or does she feel that she ought to have left Kazumitsu’s punishment to the authorities? But, one has already seen the degree of corruption in both the police and the government, and Kisara no doubt took this into account when she undertook extralegal means to avenge her parents. Using a duel to execute a murderer is hardly ideal, but neither is Black Bullet‘s society.

I’m pretty sure this did not enter into Kisara’s mind at all, but in the spirit of this blog let’s ask this question: was it unchristian to kill her brother? The Faith does recommend mercy. Kisara could have stopped short of killing him at least, right? But, four things must be taken into account when judging this matter: 1) Kazumitsu thinks nothing of taking human life–even the lives of his parents; 2) merely maiming him does not prevent him from continuing to use his political power or influence to cause grave harm; 3) the corrupt government might acquit in a trial, thus allowing him to continue to take human lives or endanger society for his own ends; and 4) Kazumitsu would no doubt be using his power to eliminate witnesses should he be arraigned. I think that there exists a hierarchy of compassion in Christianity and prudence partially governs how mercy is given. As the Glossa Interlinearis, a 12th century Biblical gloss by Anselm of Laon, states: “Justice and mercy are so united that one ought to be mingled with the other; justice without mercy is cruelty; mercy without justice profusion…” (Gloss to Matt. 5:7). Permitting Kazumitsu to live in society places the life of a murderer above his potential victims. To have compassion on the murderer in this case is to lack compassion for the innocent. Giving the lethal blow to Kazumitsu falls more under Katsujinken (“the life giving sword”) than Satsujinken (“the murdering sword”).

If anything could have rendered Kazumitsu’s death a moral wrong, it would be if Kisara had arranged the duel in the belief that she was doing wrong. It is possible to render something objectively right evil by having the wrong intention. For example, giving money to the poor in order to be praised by others or telling truth for the purpose of delighting in another’s pain on hearing it. The ugliness of the deed certainly struck her after the fact, but she did not have any doubts about whether she should fight Kazumitsu beforehand. The preparations before the duel evince her sense of righteous indignation. But, if there be any truth to Kisara’s belief that she’s evil for avenging her parents, it could only be because she undertook the revenge believing that she was doing wrong.

You couldn’t be more wrong, Kisara.

Nevermind, you could be.

But, what do my dear readers think? Was Kisara’s action laudable filial piety? The only way to stop a dangerous malefactor? Erroneous vigilantism? Or wrong because Kisara acted against her conscience from the beginning?

This is a last reminder that this Sunday, Divine Mercy Sunday, offers the Faithful a chance to gain a plenary indulgence. The conditions are described as follows:

The plenary indulgence is granted (under the usual conditions of a sacramental confession, Eucharistic communion and a prayer for the intentions of the Supreme Pontiff) to the faithful who, on Divine Mercy Sunday, in a spirit that is completely detached from the affection for a sin, even a venial sin, recite the Our Father and the Creed, and also adding a devout prayer (e.g. Merciful Jesus, I trust in you!).

So, go to confession this Saturday or that Sunday if your Church offers it then, receive communion, have a strong resolution to turn from sin, pray the Our Father, the Apostles’ Creed, and “Jesus, I trust in you.” Should you die immediately after that, you’ll go straight to heaven without a moment of Purgatory.

How many of my dear readers balked at this bold assertion? A villain becomes a saint in the space of one or two days? And quite painlessly? No, they should have to suffer more! Forgiveness should be more difficult! But, we are forgetting the Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard, where those who worked one hour are given the same reward as those who bore the day and the heat.

We forget one more thing: mercy is unearned. At least, mercy was not earned by us. It was earned by Jesus Christ for all that would receive His mercy. Either through the instrument of His Church or without the instrumentality of His Church, Our Lord can apply mercy to whomever He wishes. Our very willingness to receive mercy, our tenderness of heart, is something Jesus Christ earned for us. Therefore, we have no right to be like the Prophet Jonah and sulk because Our Lord shows mercy in a manner which doesn’t meet with our human values.

But, we are so quick to doubt God’s Mercy and Love for us! In the Parable of the Prodigal Son, the Father does not have the wayward son weep for a week outside of his door and fast on bread and water before taking him into His house. Rather, He does so immediately. To use an example from the life of St. Gertrude, she once wished to gain a plenary indulgence, but illness or business kept her from being able to obtain it. The Lord asked her if she wished to have it, to which she responded yes. After the Lord’s blessing, she doubted the very purity which she felt in her soul. Knowing her doubts, Our Lord recalled to her that the sun can bleach dyed cloth to a pure white. Our Lord said to her: “If I have given such power to a creature, how much more can I purify souls?”

And so, let us allow the Lord to shine down as much mercy as He wishes upon us two days from now on Divine Mercy Sunday.

Inuyasha stood as my third favorite anime, but finishing Inuyasha: The Final Act gives me no choice but to bump it back into second place ahead of Code Geass. Yes, the final installment of the series was enough to cover for any faults in the first several seasons. The whole series focuses on the battle between good and evil. Such shows and books are a dime a dozen, but Inuyasha parallels reality closely enough to catapult it to greatness. In particular, Naraku very nearly captures the attitudes and wiles of the devil, and Inuyasha and his friends show how to beat the devil.

#1 Good always wins.

This is the first and most important rule. One must always act with this truth in mind lest one be taken down by despair. Even if we are plagued with defeats, we must remember that an All-Powerful and All-Merciful God desires to hand us the victory which He won for us, and so we have great reason to hope, do penance, and continue doing good. Naraku in particular tries to fill Inuyasha and his friends with despair.

The only thing to do is to keep fighting without believing the evil one’s lies. As St. Anthony of the Desert (from whom I draw many of these maxims) said, Christ has defeated Satan so that the devils are powerless–they can only threaten. They are no more than playthings for us Christians no matter how frightful they appear. Christ always is ready to give us the power for victory, unless too much pride prevents his grace from being efficacious in us. But these very falls provide reason for humility and allow for us to be victorious through God’s grace later.

#2 Evil is best fought by the greathearted virtues of faith, hope, charity, and courage.

We see this especially in scenes like Sesshoumaru unhesitatingly entering the insides of Naraku, who has become a giant spider, in order to save Rin or Inuyasha jumping into the underworld to save Kagome. Also, the utter reliance Kagome places in Inuyasha offers us a great symbol of faith: she does not fear falling into dark abysses, knowing that Inuyasha will save her. We Christians should also not fear the darkness, knowing that we not only have a powerful savior, but an omnipotent and omnibenevolent Savior.

Evil cannot be conquered by excessive anxiety or worrying. This is the fault of scrupulous people. (Yours truly is guilty as charged.) If we have excessive worry in our hearts, the devil will play upon these fears until we cannot perceive real goods or begin to fall into more vices. Yet, if our hearts are filled with faith, hope, charity, and courage, all hell breaking into pandemonium cannot scare us. Hence, it is important to fight evil with the greathearted virtues.

St. Anthony the Abbot doesn’t look scared at all, does he?

#3 Remember Mercy and show mercy.

We are all weak and fall often. Therefore, it is important to show mercy to one another, and to hope for mercy–even though all mercy is unmerited.

This is exemplified by things like Kagome forgiving Inuyasha for wounding her–the lover forgives her beloved. In a similar way, the Church is the Beloved of God, who is more infinitely merciful than any human lover; and so, we have full reason to hope in receiving God’s mercy. Then, we also have Sesshoumaru’s forgiveness of Sango for attempting to cut down Naraku by cutting through Rin in order to save Miroku. Fortunately, Rin is not cut down, and Sesshoumaru completely overlooked Sango’s sin, for which she confesses to deserve punishment. Though there is no forgiveness scene, the fact that Sango has three children at the end proves that forgiveness must at least have been tacitly given.

#4 Even though we fall, don’t surrender.

Consider the mistakes Inuyasha and the gang made above. They do not excessively grieve over their faults as to stop trying. Rather, they continue to fight and refuse to give in to despair. Miroku and Sango are particularly anguished by the prospect of the wind tunnel devouring Miroku; but, refuse to give in to despair, even though they come very close.

We are only human beings, not angels after all.

#5 The devil lies and ought not to be heeded, even when he speaks the truth.

The devil is “the father of lies.” Therefore, he ought never to be heeded. Even when he speaks the truth, it is so that he can twist it to his own deadly purposes later. Thus, Jesus Christ even silences the devil when he truly calls Jesus the Holy One of God.

In the same way, Naraku constantly lies or uses the peril of the situations to induce despair. Sesshoumaru is perhaps the best at picking up on Naraku’s lies, especially where he quietly ignores all the illusions Naraku places before him of Rin. (Indeed, silence and a calm mind are two great weapons in the fight against evil.) And Inuyasha has this great line: “I’m sick of listening to you!” In the same way, we should ignore the evil one and live our daily lines focused on doing good and our duty.

#6 Though victory is assured, the struggle will take a very, very long time.

Inuyasha ran for a good 56 volumes, 193 episodes, and four movies in toto. The struggle against evil in our lives and against our own vices will continue until death. But, we must imitate Inuyasha and his friends in fighting this battle with perseverance and magnanimity until all our vices are pulled up by the roots. Our Savior wishes this very thing.

#7 Evil is small-hearted, mean, essentially nothing, and for nothing.

Kagome beautifully brings this out in a speech toward the end of the final battle. Naraku lives merely to destroy. He destroys relationships, friendships, families, and lives; but, for what? No benefit ever accrues to him except that hollowest of pleasures: the delight in seeing another’s pain. In the same way, the devil is the hater of all good and so truly deserves to be despised.

However, Kagome’s speech brings out a very sad point: Naraku, while still a man, desired to be loved by Kikyo, but he gave in to despair and envy, which allowed him to be possessed by demons. There are even hints in the show that a part of him wants to be good and to love others. Rather than follow these good impulses, he actively strives to eliminate them. These choices resulted in him becoming the evil creature that he is.

Hence, though we can gaily trample upon the devil and his designs, we should pity and pray for our fellow men who have fallen so low. Remembering that if not for the grace of God, we ourselves would be in the same sorry state.

Dear Readers, the idea for this article came from my reminiscences about my Alma Mater, Hillsdale College. I feel that I was too shy to take proper advantage of the great minds and personalities which surrounded me there. Among my reminisces, one professor stands out: Dr. Reist. He was a hoot. A professor not easily forgotten. I’ll never forget the first time he walked into my classroom:

He says: “My wife broke her leg.” The students collectively gasp. Then, Dr. Reist says: “I told her having sex standing up was dangerous.”

That’s a masterful way to break the ice! One day, when he noticed people were not participating or had not done the readings, he told us that we weren’t free. Which is an interesting way to put it! And sealing one’s lips as one looks down at an unfamiliar text hoping that the professor won’t call on one may be compared to slavery. After all, how much more preferable is it to be able to gaze steadily upon the teacher confident in being able to provide an answer to any question and being free to participate or not as you list?

This professor, a fellow New Jerseyan, had once been Catholic but converted to a variety of Protestantism–even became a minister. I suspect the reason for his conversion lay in that he felt Catholicism’s emphasis on faith and works placed too much emphasis on personal merit than on God’s election. (But, even our merits are God’s gifts to us. The idea of cooperation between grace and free will tends to overcomplicate matters from most Protestant perspectives.) However, he seemed grateful for many of the lessons he learned as a Catholic. For example, he once told us: “Do you know that it’s a sin to forget your sins?”

And it certainly is: the sin of pride. In our unending process of repentance, we ought always remember where we have been and all the patience God has shown us and continues to show us despite our iniquity and lack of amendment. Even if we claim that we have progressed far from where we once were, that does not cancel out the fact that we did not deserve to be extricated from our wicked ways of living–that it was pure Mercy which brought us out of each vicious circle. Even after confession where our guilt is washed away, can we ever stop mourning for the wounds we have placed on Christ’s body or forget that we still deserve temporal punishment and have deserved everlasting flames?

So, whenever a non-believer claims that Christians have a nonchalant attitude toward sins because God is so ready to forgive, you can tell him that this is the attitude of the proud or the ignorant. An educated Christian knows that he ought never stop pouring tears into his pillow or cease remembering the wounds of Christ until Christ himself has wiped away every tear and welcomes us into Our Father’s house.

Hello, dear readers! I just want to remind you to say the Novena of the Divine Mercy Chaplet this year. It starts on Good Friday and includes saying a prayer intention for a different group on each day: All the World especially poor sinners, Priests and Religious, Pagans, Heretics and Schismatics, Faithful Christians, Meek and Humble souls, those who glorify God’s mercy by meditating on the Sacred Passion, the Souls in Purgatory, and those who have become lukewarm. We are all in need of God’s mercy, and praying for others both increases our charity and obtains mercy for ourselves.

I was thinking to myself how God’s mercy, love, and our faith are so important. Unless we show mercy, mercy shall not be shown to us. Unless we love others, we cannot love God. Unless we live in both love and mercy, we cannot have faith. For, faith is trusting that God loves us to death and that His mercy is without limit. But, if we ourselves don’t show mercy or love others as unconditionally as possible, if we’re selective in who we love or who we’ll forgive, then we may begun to think that God is selective or that limitations are placed on His love. But, this is false. God is unconditional love, constantly looking for the least excuse to bring each and every one of us into His kingdom.

Ultimately, love is unitive: one wishes to be united to all, to suffer when they suffer, to rejoice when they rejoice, to know everything they know, and even to be punished when they are punished. One would not go wrong if they loved the very worst people imaginable, felt themselves guilty of the sins committed by these people, and did penance for them. That is the highest state of the Christian vocation. Love, forgive all offenses, strive to remain pure, honestly admit one’s failings, don’t fear to love, and show mercy to everyone you meet. Try to imitate the Heart of the Master, and contemplate on the lengths he went to redeem you so that you may take some of His Love with you in order to share it with others. Then, God will take you up into Heaven and place your head upon the very Heart you strove to imitate.

Lest the obstacles which are sure to sprout up thwart you, have recourse to prayer. Don’t overdo it, but be sure to pray enough for your needs. In this way, you may feel fatigued, but not discouraged. Plagued by sins and defects, but not despairing. Perhaps the greatest prayer for this goal is to meditate on the Passion of Christ while praying the Divine Mercy Chaplet. Just pray the Sorrow Mysteries as if doing the rosary or concentrate on one mystery, on certain wounds, on the Stations of the Cross, or on Our Lord’s Sacred Heart. You might just find your favorite devotion and will certainly please the Divine Master.

Excuse the French title, dear readers, but this article is related to another rather popular article on this site titled Fiction’s Raison D’Etre. The title was proofed by the former French teacher who resides next door to my room, so you may be assured of its grammatically correct nature. (It’s so nice living next to a former French teacher. I’ll have to try my best to benefit from this propinquity in order to master French before he leaves us next semester.) Beginning to watch Hell Girl again and reading George MacDonald’s Weighted and Wanting have prompted me to write this article. Both works have certain Christian themes—especially this novel of George MacDonald, who was also a great influence on C. S. Lewis—which helped to highlight the other reason to read fiction: repentance.

First, I shall summarize the basic premise of Hell Girl, the eponymous young heroine of which is also known as Enma Ai. Enma Ai was cursed with the eternal duty of aiding those who were seeking revenge by dragging their tormentors to hell. The sufferers contact her through a certain website called the Hell Link, at midnight—merely typing in the name of their tormentor. She appears to them holding a doll with a red string, pulling which string seals this contract: she’ll send their tormentor to hell with the catch that the person who initiates the contract must also go to hell upon their death. (A surprisingly large number of people agree to such terms.)

You wouldn’t have guessed, but this girl was one of the most eager to pull the red string.

This premise provides us with some great scenarios for character study, a favorite genre of the Japanese. As I mentioned in the prior article on fiction, character study aids us in understanding other people. On the other hand, it is a more useful tool in bringing us to understand ourselves—especially in cases where we cannot see our faults. How can we repent unless our shortcomings are present to us?

That’s unrepentant for you.

Hell Girl excels at bringing to light various faults, particularly since all the episodes employ modern settings with commonplace situations. This makes it highly probable that we shall find ourselves in one of the antagonists. (As I did in episode ten of the second season. Despite its edifying nature, watching how Tetsuro Megoro’s lack of constancy led to his demise was rather painful to watch.) People often possess faults of which they are unaware or faults in which they have justified and excused themselves for so long as to produce hardness of heart, i.e. they no longer see a need to change. By holding fictional characters with the same faults before our eyes, our identification with them will hopefully reveal how we have gone wrong and the necessity of our repentance. Otherwise, we shall be like the tormentors in Hell Girl, claiming our innocence despite the heinousness of our offenses and dying with final impenitence on our souls. (From which, may God preserve us!)

So says the detective who used his position to stalk and harass a high school girl, attempt to murder her, actually murder his partner, critically wound the girl’s father, and is presently attempting to finish the job.

It is interesting to note that all the antagonists are offered the opportunity to own up to their guilt: final impenitence in grave sin—at least, according to the Catholic Faith—is the only way to be damned. Perhaps, Ai would be unable to fulfill the contract should the sinner admit his guilt. One imagines God intervening on behalf of the repentant lest such a one be eternally damned. We never know if such would be the case, because no one ever repents in the show at that point; though, I do remember a few rather inoffensive people being condemned—perhaps to cast doubt on Ai’s role as the savior of the oppressed.

The last thing they see before falling headlong into perdition: flowers.

Weighted and Wanting so far is less drastic in the consequences for people’s faults, which tend to be various forms of worldliness and vanity. But, the fault of mine with which I am reminded in this work recalls part of a lecture given at my old Alma Mater by the renowned Dr. Justin J. Jackson (if you care to hear give a beautiful convocation speech, click here):

“And how do we treat our families?” When no one ventured to give an opinion, he replied for us: “Horribly!”

Needless to remark, no one gainsaid this opinion. But, does this shock any of my dear readers? Is there not a tendency to fear offending our families less than offending our friends, because forgiveness is so readily available? Instead, we ought to be less inclined to offend our family members due to their readiness to forgive us.

n.b. this is George MacDonald, not my former English Professor.

George MacDonald portrays the elder brother in the Raymount family, Cornelius, as suffering from this defect in regard to every member of his family save his father, who governs how his children shall inherit his property. Cornelius enjoys deriding his sister Hester at most every opportunity, though Hester isn’t perfectly innocent of this defect herself, and, on the whole, treats his friends and business associates better than his family. Yet, Cornelius is rather intelligent in a way: if we treated our friends the same way as we treated our family, we should only have the latter left to us. However, one cannot be too hard on oneself: the members of our families often take our good will for granted, increasing the chances of us sinning through impatience or wrath itself!

Illustration from one of his works. MacDonald was most famous for his fantasies.

So, one walks into the confessional with more offenses against one’s family than against one’s friends. But, cognizant of this fault and with the help of God’s grace, we can work to overcome it. Having been patient with the defects of my friends and associates, we can attempt to apply the same patience to the defects of my family members. Depending on the vision of George MacDonald, Cornelius’s lack of respect for his family and inability to consider this a fault may lead to his downfall.

Therefore, the next time one feels moved to deride another person or even a fictional character for their faults, one ought to first consider how oneself may be guilty of the same fault.